Bank of America Company Earnings Good, but Not Enough

Banking, finance, and taxes

Published: July 17, 2013 7:45 am

Last Updated: April 27, 2020 5:19 pm

Bank of America Corp. (NYSE: BAC) reported second-quarter 2013 results before markets opened this morning. The investment bank and financial services giant reported quarterly diluted earnings per share (EPS) of $0.32 on revenue of $22.9 billion. In the same period a year ago, it reported EPS of $0.19 on revenue of $22.2 billion. Second-quarter results also compare to the consensus estimates for EPS of $0.25 on revenue of $22.79 billion.

The bank’s interest income rose from $9.8 billion in the first quarter to $10.8 billion in the second, and the net margin rose from 2.43% to 2.44%. In the second quarter of last year, net margin totaled 2.21%. Noninterest income fell $242 million and noninterest expenses fell by $1 billion on lower litigation expenses, reduced expenses in the bank’s Legacy Assets and Servicing group, and lower personnel expenses. Bank of America has reduced its employee count by nearly 18,000 since the second quarter of 2012.

The bank’s CFO said:

At the beginning of the year, we said we would focus on three things revenue stability, strengthening the balance sheet and managing costs. This quarter, we delivered on all three. Revenue increased 3 percent, we continued to build capital ratios, despite the negative impact of higher interest rates on our bond portfolio, and we reduced expenses related to servicing delinquent mortgage loans at a faster rate than we originally expected.

Bank of America’s Basel I Tier 1 common capital ratio rose to 10.83%, up sequentially from 10.49% at the end of the first quarter.

Tangible book value slipped slightly, from $13.36 at the end of the first quarter to $13.32, and book value rose slightly from $20.16 to $20.18.

The bank did not provide an outlook for the current quarter, but the consensus estimates call for third-quarter EPS of $0.26 on revenues of $22.43 billion. For the full year, the consensus EPS estimate is $0.94 on revenues of $91.18 billion.

Shares are trading about 0.2% lower in the premarket this morning, at $13.92 in a 52-week range of $6.90 to $14.02. The 52-week high was set yesterday. Thomson Reuters had a consensus analyst price target of around $13.60 before today’s results were announced.

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